fiber optic

Many researchers over the years have worked towards increasing data speeds, something that has had breakthroughs in various ways over the years. The latest one involves a method the creators say is a simple concept, but one that - for whatever reason - was never done. By creating mirrored beams of light that cancel out noise, the researchers sent a 400GB/s signal down nearly 8,000 miles of fiber optic cables.

As odd as it may seem, Cuba is working its way into headlines today. We're hearing reports that Cuba has finally fired up its underwater fiber optic cable that stretches all the way to Venezuela, perhaps giving some residents their first taste of fiber optic Internet. The report comes from Internet tracking company Renesys, which says that in recent days, Cuba's ping times have been improving.

I'm sure I'm not the only one that's insanely jealous that Kansas City was able to win the Google Fiber project. The speeds people in served areas of Kansas City are able to get for the money is staggering. Kansas City now has some the fastest Internet in all of the US.

Now that Google's fiber optic service is official, it's time to talk about plans. Google Fiber has three plans for consumers to pick from - one with TV & Gigabit Internet, one with just Gigabit Internet, one with free Internet - and here we're going to be talking about the second one on that list. If you want to take advantage of Google's fiber optic network but don't require a plan that includes TV service, this is the one for you.

The folks in Kansas City, Kansas here in the United States are about to get the web at 100 times the speed most Americans have on average today. The release date for Google's Fiber program has been set today at July 26th, a little over a week from today, this just a bit more than a year since the project was first announced. With speeds this fast, we'll have to see what the city will do it it all - perhaps streaming video will become more popular than television at a rate greater than the rest of the world - speedy!

Speaking this week on the future of the detention center and naval station set in Guantanamo, Cuba, Pentagon spokesman Todd Breasseale mentioned this week that a $40 million dollar fiber optic link is in the works for 2013. This link, said Breasseale, would offer up greater telecom access for those living at the US military base. The link would not, however, as Breasseale assures, be any sort of indication that the Guantanamo Bay detention facility would be open for any longer than it would have had the link not been built.

Sometime this summer a mission will begin costing serious money and time. A three-ship convoy to lay new fiber optic cables between Tokyo and London will take off. The flotilla will begin to lay the first trans-Arctic ocean submarine fiber-optic cables. The three cables will cost up to $1.5 billion each. The goal of the cables is to reduce latency between London and Tokyo and to increase redundancy.

A Google patent application surfaced today, revealing the company's plans for lowering the cost and speeding up the deployment of its Google Fiber broadband network. The patent filing illustrates the use of a flat and flexible housing to carry the fiber-optic lines to houses. The idea also aims to reduce the environmental impact of installing the network.

Before you get too excited, Google is not looking to start its own search and for extraterrestrial life. The photo you see here is of a SETI array that happens to look much like what Google is seeking to build near its data center in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Rather than searching stars for signs of life, it appears Google wants to use its satellite array to receive content feeds from broadcast networks.

Google announced that it will begin laying fiber today in Kansas City as part of its plans to build out a new high-speed broadband network that aims to bring speeds 100 times faster than what Americans have today. Kansas City was picked out of more than 1,100 companies bidding to receive Google's fiber network.